Trust in Christ Alone
Trust is a word that conveys firm belief. It involves placing your faith, hope, and confidence in someone or something. When it comes to your salvation and your relationship with God, you want to be sure you are placing your trust in the right Person.
So what is salvation? It is to be delivered from something. In the case of salvation in relation to God, sinners (those who disobey God’s law) are in need of salvation from the wrath of God. The wrath of God is the judgment of God and the punishment for sin, which is rebellion against God that is committed in thoughts, words, and actions. The wrath of God will be experienced at the Day of Judgement when all humanity must stand before God to give account of himself to God (Romans 14:11-12; Matthew 25:31-46; Matthew 12:36-37). The person who has not trusted in Christ alone for salvation will experience the wrath of God for the penalty of sin (Romans 1:18-32). Man needs to be saved, as man was born sinful and with his heart against God (Genesis 3; Romans 5). Scripture tells us that our trust in a right relationship with God or peace with God cannot be found in ourselves nor can it be found in our good works (Ephesians 2:8-9). To trust in the belief of waiting until we “become a good person” or until we “do better” reveals our view of what we consider as “good” in the eyes of God and most importantly, it also reveals our concept of who God is, as well as His holiness.
So what is salvation? It is to be delivered from something. In the case of salvation in relation to God, sinners (those who disobey God’s law) are in need of salvation from the wrath of God. The wrath of God is the judgment of God and the punishment for sin, which is rebellion against God that is committed in thoughts, words, and actions. The wrath of God will be experienced at the Day of Judgement when all humanity must stand before God to give account of himself to God (Romans 14:11-12; Matthew 25:31-46; Matthew 12:36-37). The person who has not trusted in Christ alone for salvation will experience the wrath of God for the penalty of sin (Romans 1:18-32). Man needs to be saved, as man was born sinful and with his heart against God (Genesis 3; Romans 5). Scripture tells us that our trust in a right relationship with God or peace with God cannot be found in ourselves nor can it be found in our good works (Ephesians 2:8-9). To trust in the belief of waiting until we “become a good person” or until we “do better” reveals our view of what we consider as “good” in the eyes of God and most importantly, it also reveals our concept of who God is, as well as His holiness.
God details in His Word what He considers as His standards of holiness. Please turn in your Bible to Exodus 20 As you read you will notice the Ten Commandments listed. The Ten Commandments were laws given by God and show us how holy He is and what His definition of “good” is. In addition to Exodus 20, the book of Leviticus details more than 600 Levitical Laws that God required for sacrifices for sin and laws to be adhered to for holiness and consecration before Him. Even with all of the requirements given, man had to consistently make sacrifices as payment for the forgiveness of sins committed against God (Hebrews 10:11). As a result, God was showing man that man could never meet His standard of holiness because He is perfect. The standards of holiness and the characteristics of the holiness of God have not changed. He is just as holy today as He was in the Old Testament and New Testament.
So this leads us back to the question, do you trust in Christ alone for salvation? Looking at the Scriptures mentioned above, the requirements for the payment for forgiveness from sin, and the separation between God and man that sin creates, means that man cannot meet the holy standard that God requires for holiness and a right relationship to have peace with God. God desires fellowship with man but sin separates man from God. Knowing man could never meet His standard, God in His great love for mankind sent Jesus to fulfill the requirements of the Law as the perfect Sacrifice for sins (Matthew 5:17; Matthew 1:21; John 3:16-18) so that man could be reconciled in fellowship with God. Christ met the requirements of the Law and fulfilled the Law on behalf of man. Christ, in His love, took the sins of mankind upon Himself, and received the wrath of God for mankind as a Substitute for all who place their trust in His death, burial, and resurrection so that sinners can be made right and acceptable before God (Colossians 1:21-23). For those who have trusted in the willful sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, God sees them as righteous (meeting the requirement for holiness) because of what Christ has done (Hebrews 10:1-18). Those who have not trusted in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ for the payment and forgiveness of sin (those who trust in their own good works or those who believe they can add to what Christ has done), will be judged by the requirements of the Law at the Day of Judgement and pay for their own sins, which will result in the wrath of God and eternal separation from God in hell (Colossians 3:6; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 5:6).
So this leads us back to the question, do you trust in Christ alone for salvation? Looking at the Scriptures mentioned above, the requirements for the payment for forgiveness from sin, and the separation between God and man that sin creates, means that man cannot meet the holy standard that God requires for holiness and a right relationship to have peace with God. God desires fellowship with man but sin separates man from God. Knowing man could never meet His standard, God in His great love for mankind sent Jesus to fulfill the requirements of the Law as the perfect Sacrifice for sins (Matthew 5:17; Matthew 1:21; John 3:16-18) so that man could be reconciled in fellowship with God. Christ met the requirements of the Law and fulfilled the Law on behalf of man. Christ, in His love, took the sins of mankind upon Himself, and received the wrath of God for mankind as a Substitute for all who place their trust in His death, burial, and resurrection so that sinners can be made right and acceptable before God (Colossians 1:21-23). For those who have trusted in the willful sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, God sees them as righteous (meeting the requirement for holiness) because of what Christ has done (Hebrews 10:1-18). Those who have not trusted in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ for the payment and forgiveness of sin (those who trust in their own good works or those who believe they can add to what Christ has done), will be judged by the requirements of the Law at the Day of Judgement and pay for their own sins, which will result in the wrath of God and eternal separation from God in hell (Colossians 3:6; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 5:6).
Who are you trusting for salvation from the wrath of God? Are you trusting in your own “good” works to meet the standard of holiness required by the Law or are you trusting in the complete, sufficient, and finished work of Christ who perfectly fulfilled the Law, met the holy standard that God requires, and was the perfect Sacrifice sent by God for the forgiveness of sins?
If you have not trusted in Christ and His finished work as the perfect and complete fulfillment of the Law and the only Sacrificial payment for the forgiveness of your sin, please do so today. God desires reconciliation and fellowship with man. To receive reconciliation and fellowship with God, confess your sin to God, ask for His forgiveness, turn from your sin, turn to God and trust in Christ who took the judgement and wrath from God on behalf of those who trust in His sufficient work in order to receive reconciliation and peace with God. Please find a church that teaches the Scripture, which incorporates whole-hearted dependence on Christ so that you can grow in your relationship with God and His Word, as well as grow with fellow Disciples of Christ. You can also be baptized at your church as a sign of your new life in Christ (Acts 16:31-33). To find a church in your area, please click here.
If you have not trusted in Christ and His finished work as the perfect and complete fulfillment of the Law and the only Sacrificial payment for the forgiveness of your sin, please do so today. God desires reconciliation and fellowship with man. To receive reconciliation and fellowship with God, confess your sin to God, ask for His forgiveness, turn from your sin, turn to God and trust in Christ who took the judgement and wrath from God on behalf of those who trust in His sufficient work in order to receive reconciliation and peace with God. Please find a church that teaches the Scripture, which incorporates whole-hearted dependence on Christ so that you can grow in your relationship with God and His Word, as well as grow with fellow Disciples of Christ. You can also be baptized at your church as a sign of your new life in Christ (Acts 16:31-33). To find a church in your area, please click here.
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